An encouraging set-up soon descends into a grubby muddle, leaving you wishing you were just rewatching "The Name Of The Rose" instead.

Broader and more accessible than either "Shaun Of The Dead" or "Hot Fuzz," Paul is pure Pegg and Frost - clever, cheeky and very, very funny. You'll never look at E. T. in the same way again.

In the filmography of liberal-skewing, Bush-era true stories, this is a measured, persuasive item.

Taymor's winningly cast, imaginative take on Shakespeare passes the test of bringing the Bard to film. It may also be the only PG Disney film to contain the word "F---".

A certain percentage of the audience will instantly sieze on this as their favorite movie of all time, and a small, but not insignificant demographic will have nightmares. Verbinski and Depp probably like it that way.

This grungy anti-musical will offend just about everyone with its attitude towards women, gays, kids, and the elderly.

A gentle trance-out and the strangest Palme d'Or winner in a while.

By keeping the pace quick, the explanation light and the characters strong, Nolfi achieves the near-impossible: a film puzzle you won't mind leaving unexplained.

If you can make it through the bland schmaltz of the first half you'll be rewarded with a spectacular blast of sustained action and the promise of even better to come. This could be the start of something great.

A shambling, ponderous mess that aims to be a trashy cult classic and merely ends up in the trash - Fichtner aside. And, in the biggest disappointment of all, there's not even that much angry driving in it.

Compelling and vivid, it's another fine piece of work from an up-and-coming talent.

Not a bad premise, but material demanding a light touch is weighed down by a desperate desire to fit in, like a little kid swearing to impress the big boys.

With a frustrating format and poor animation, it's still worth it for Franco and the chance to engage with a key work of poetry.

Just don't walk in expecting to become a believer by the end.

A dark rites-of-passage story meets lethal Shakespearean drama, with low-key performances that artfully get under the skin.

Squeaky clean fun for the youngsters in the family. Everyone else hide.

Whoever demanded a third installment of Lawrence's mirthless mash-up of weak gags and cross-dressing horrors should be imprisoned and forced to watch it on repeat until they repent. Avoid.

Surely cinema's first Mexican social-realist cannibal horror drama, it's grimly funny and at times horribly effective stuff. Ickily excellent.

A sharp study of corporate greed for those who felt Michael Moore pulled too many punches.

Laurent's brushstrokes always feel a little too broad to capture the finer details of the legendary New Wavers, but some fascinating archive footage saves his documentary from missing the mark altogether.

The wee'uns may enjoy the forest-based capers but for adults this is no pickernick.

A beautifully realised adaptation of a profoundly affecting novel. Intelligent sci-fi provides the backdrop, while in the foreground is a trio of truly impressive performances from Mulligan, Knightley and Garfield.

Totally crackers but it gets powered by pure invention and eccentricity alone.

Terrific: tough, exciting, funny, gorgeous and bewitchingly acted, this is darn close to perfection.

Workmanlike suspenser, with plenty of cold water but sparse chills. When it comes to James Cameron scuba thrillers, "The Abyss" still has the edge.

A captivating, and sometimes alarming, exposé of the business end of nuclear power. Watch as part of a behind-the-sofa double bill with Countdown To Zero.

A gently moving film that's always thought-provoking if at times a little slow going.

Kidman, in particular, hasn't been this good since "To Die For" and maybe not even then.